It is estimated that, in the United States alone, more than 200,000,000 rounds of golf are played each year. Assuming that each round takes between 31/2 and 4 hours, 700,000,000 to 800,000,000 person-hours are expended on the golf course in a single year. The present invention seeks to either lessen the number of person-hours, or to make such hours more enjoyable for the golfer.
Very basically, golf is a game of impact between the head of the golf club and a golf ball. No matter the course, the equipment, the grip, physique or stature of the golfer, his stance or timing, the proper contact between the club head and the golf ball is primary to a successful golf game.
During a downswing, a good golfer can generate up to four horsepower. During a full drive, the face of the driver is in contact with the golf ball for about 1/2 millisecond. From the amount of impact until the ball springs free of the driver, the ball and club travel together about three-fourths of an inch. The force applied to the ball by the club head during impact on a full drive rises to a peak of about 2,000 pounds. The average force applied during the 1/2 millisecond contact, that is, during contact of the club head and the ball until departure of the ball is about 1,400 pounds.
The time used by the club head of a driver going from rest (at the top of the backswing) to the bottom of the downswing, travelling at a speed of about 100 miles per hour, is about one-fifth second. On impact with a seven ounce driver head, the ball proceeds at about 135 miles per hour.
With these factors in mind, the present club is designed to give the golfer maximum effectiveness in controlling the aim and flight of the ball, while at the same time allowing a wide margin for error in the area of contact between the club head and the ball.